Got the truck back from the shop today. Posted last week in regards to abnormal tire wear. Had all four wheels balanced Friday and an alignment today. When I took it in I expressed my concern with road noise and the wear.

When I got it back I was told a few things I didn't expect. First, toe and camber were out in a manner consistent with my wear. That I expected.

Second, I was told I am running the tire pressure too low. I have 245/75 Range E BFG TA/KO's at 55 PSI all around. He recommended 70-80 PSI to get more life out of them. That I did not expect.

Then I asked about the shocks because I am thinking about getting some Bilsteins. (They are stock shocks currently) He proceeds to tell me the stockers are Bilsteins! :Insane: If this is the case, why is everyone talking about buying Bilsteins? Are they a different grade or something? I was really not expecting that.

So anyway, I upped the pressure to 70, but I think that is going to hurt me tomorrow. Anyone got any thoughts? Thanks.

Well whatever the stock shocks I took off of my truck are they perform much much poorer than the bilsteins that I replaced them with.

Maybe he thinks it's a Z71 as those used to come with bilsteins.

As far as the pressure goes, if you're running around unloaded wouldnt' the higher pressure make the middle of the tire wear out faster?

To get the best wear out of your tire find the psi this way.
Take a piece of chalk and mark across the tread of your tire front and back. Drive a few feet look at the mark it should rub off evenly across the tread. If it wears in the center take out some air, wears on the edges put some in.

Thats a good idea. I would have never thought about that.

William

To get the best wear out of your tire find the psi this way.
Take a piece of chalk and mark across the tread of your tire front and back. Drive a few feet look at the mark it should rub off evenly across the tread. If it wears in the center take out some air, wears on the edges put some in.
Nice piece of advice there, Doze!!! :ro)

I think you will find that 50 to 55 in the front and 5 less in the rear will get you excellent tire wear and a lot better ride. Later! Frank

I think you will find that 50 to 55 in the front and 5 less in the rear will get you excellent tire wear and a lot better ride. Later! Frank
But I would think that when loaded you should bring the pressure up to the spec of 75(?).

Jim

The stock shocks are definitely NOT Bilsteins.

I am in desperate need of an alignment. However, I think I need to rotate my tires first since the fronts are worn very unevenly from inside to ouside. I also think I need to jack my T-bars up all the way. This will insure that I can get back to the same alignment after lowering them for racing. I know I can set it in the middle and get a measurement also, but it is easier to have them all the way up. Plus it makes the truck look bigger.

like someone said, the tire guy probably doesnt know the difference between a 1500 z71 and 2500 4x4. z71s come with bilsteins, our trucks DO NOT!

Second, I was told I am running the tire pressure too low. I have 245/75 Range E BFG TA/KO's at 55 PSI all around. He recommended 70-80 PSI to get more life out of them. That I did not expect.

Why didn’t he put the recom<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:PersonName>me</st1:PersonName>nd 70- 80 PSI in them if he thought it was the best for the tires? Isn’t that part of his job and what you’re paying him for?

so what are people paying for an alignment for their 4WD 2500HD's?

cmc

I use a "Tread Depth Guage", scale is in 32's.

I measure each tread groove across the tire at three locations 120 degrees apart on the circumference of the tire for "Pressure analysis".

The original tires measured 18/32's when new.

The truck has ~18K miles on it now and the tires have ~12/32's tread remaining. The tires have been rotated once @ ~8k miles; front to back (no "X"ing), the spare is still a virgin. No abnormal wear and they all remain square across the tread. I run 80 psi all 12 months, loaded/empty.

(6 {32's used}/18 {K miles driven}*16 {usable tread in 32's}) = 53.3 K miles of service (ya' right, in a perfect world).

The ride is much better than my '76 K5, and at least as good as the wife's '98 Chrysler. Not to shabby for an HD working truck.

Bilsteins all around @ ~3K miles.

We "SnowBird" a 36' 5er for five winter months, GCVW 22K + (under on all axles ):h ).

Towing speeds, 60 - 65 mph (short sprints over; when passing a "*urd or *am"); 10.5 - 12 mpg.

Non towing speeds, 65 - 70 (or speed limit); 17 + mpg.

Town and going to the store; 12 - 15 mpg.

Love this truck:bounce: .

Idahofox

Workedforit,

I told him not to mess with the tires, just check the alignment. So he was doing what I paid him to do.

Thanks for the clarification on the Bilsteins, however that does make me question the rest of the repair.

Now I understand why.

The stock shocks are definitely NOT Bilsteins.
They could be Bilsteins. I am not quite sure who makes the standard shock for GM but chances are fairly high that it is indeed Bilstein. Your service guy could be right since Bilstein makes many different levels of shocks.

Now they are certainly not what everyone here refers to as "Bilsteins"..... the upgraded pressurized yellow OE shock that everyone upgrades to.........

Heavy D,

I have a lot of experience with Tires, Alignments and Shocks. I worked a tire store for six years while attending college, this store also did suspension and brake work. I’ve been to numerous training classes from Michelin and Pirelli.

1. The road noise was most likely due to cupping of your front tires because of lack of rotation and the factory shocks. The front tires will always cup because you have independent suspension in the front, the rear tires will most likely never cup up because you have a solid rear axle. Rotate your tires about every 5k miles, and have them cross the front tires to the back and the back straight up. Crossing the front tires to the back changes the direction and helps to correct the existing cupping. Also, the factory shocks on your truck are not Bilsteins, so put a set on. There is no better shock in the world. These shocks are built in Germany and are used on race cars, Mercedes, BMW, some GM vehicles, and many other premium vehicles.

2. The correct air pressure for your vehicle is located on your driver’s door (only if you are running the stock size), which I believe you are. The tire pressure listed on the tire is just the tire’s maximum cold pressure. The tire pressures listed on the door is really what you should run tires at and check them when they are cold not hot. Most likely, the pressure in the front will be less than the rear and this so the truck does not over-steer or under-steer and so handles properly. With these trucks you will have to keep an eye on your tire wear because of the different types of tires. If your tires are wearing on the inside and the outside (and not because of your alignment) then your tires are under inflated. If your tires are wearing in the middle, you have too much air in them.

3. You probably did an alignment. To be safe, have it checked twice a year unless you notice something real funny.

4. Check your air once a month and more often in the winter.

I hope this helps.

Heavy D,


2. The correct air pressure for your vehicle is located on your driver’s door (only if you are running the stock size), which I believe you are. The tire pressure listed on the tire is just the tire’s maximum cold pressure. The tire pressures listed on the door is really what you should run tires at and check them when they are cold not hot.


If your tires are wearing on the inside and the outside (and not because of your alignment) then your tires are under inflated. If your tires are wearing in the middle, you have too much air in them.

Great post. Solid advice.

On my truck with my driving habits both the stock 245's and the aftermarket 265's did not like the pressures on the door post. 55 front 80 outback.

The front shoulders and the rear centers were litterly disapearing before my eyes. I have found 60 all the way around acheives very even tread wear.

I thought I read here or heard somewhere that the 1500 Z71 doesn't come with Bilsteins anymore.

like someone said, the tire guy probably doesnt know the difference between a 1500 z71 and 2500 4x4. z71s come with bilsteins, our trucks DO NOT!

Also, I run 50psi all 4 tires. I never have any load, (at least not yet) so 80psi is too high for no load.

Jalopez - The cupping could be due to factory shocks, but it is certainly not due to lack of rotation. I rotate every 5,000 miles and there is only 12,000 on these tires.

I do think the alignment work I had done was not very good. Looking at the truck, it seems to have a bit of a toe problem. This is very hard to tell just by looking, but I do not have a good way to measure. I am going to call the shop Monday.

Also, there is no door sticker on the inside of my door. Anyone care to share what it says? Thanks.

Greg

HeavyD

My sticker says 50 for the front and 80 for the rear, but I have a 2WD. The sticker is not actually on the door, it is on the cab of the truck when you open the door (down and to the right). If it is not on the driver’s side, try the passenger side. Different cars have them in different places, but of the 5 Chevy trucks I’ve owned the sticker has always been on the driver’s side.

Here is what it says in 05 Manual about the sticker:

“A Tire and Loading Information label is attached to the vehicle’s center pills (B-Pillar), below the driver’s door lock post (striker). This label lists your vehicle’s original equipment tires and their recommended cold tire inflation pressures…”

Also, the owner’s manual talks about why over-inflation and under-inflation is bad. Let me know if you can’t find it.

My driver's door reads 50 PSI front and 80 PSI back.

so what are people paying for an alignment for their 4WD 2500HD's?

cmc
Just for a front alignment I just paid 89.95 up here in alaska. They also adjusted my torsion bars for that price.